My girlfriend and I are planning a trip to Southern CO the week of the festival and are debating whether to buy tickets for only Thursday. We have a wedding to attend the weekend of the festival so would really only be able to attend Thursday. We’ve both done festivals before so we know what to expect. Our thoughts were to come to Telluride from Mesa Verde on Wednesday, attend the festival Thursday then be on our way on Friday morning.
My questions are these:
is it worth it?.. to only attend Thursday? (music-wise & logistic-wise vs. the short amount of time we’re there)
it looks like Lawson Hill is the only festival camping available that doesn’t require the 4-day festival pass (which we won’t have). Does buying a Lawson Hill pass allow for camping on Wednesday night?
What other camping options are available in the area? Are San Juan or Uncompahgre National Forests adequate alternatives?
If camping outside of the area, what’s the feasibility of driving in and out Thursday?
I LOVE Thursdays at T-Ride. The crowd is just a BIT smaller than the rest of the weekend, and you can be sure that the music lineup will be great.
Here’s a thought: Because there are people who can’t get to T-Ride before Friday morning (cuz of that ugly work-thang!), you might see if you can find an extra bed in someone’s group condo. I’m sure that they’d appreciate not having to pay for a night when they can’t be there. Just change your post subject to: ISO a room for Thursday ONLY. I’ll bet you’ll find a festivarian that would be interested!
Trust me, you’ll think about blowing off the wedding (which you will not do because you are responsible adults, and you know your priorities in life, well… you think you know your priorities in propper order right now, but in June all that is going to change, and from here out you will tell all your friends and family members that all social functions need not be scheduled in any part of June because you will be PACKIN’ FOR TELLURIDE!!!).
:spill Sorry, don’t know what came over me there for a second.
Yes, you two should come to the fest on Thursday. :thumbsup
There are some surrounding FS campgrounds that friends of mine have stayed at and enjoyed. If you’re staying at any of those, you won’t be driving into Telluride, you’ll be driving to Mountain Village, parking and taking the free gondola to Telluride. That way you don’t have to pay the full price for a Lawson camp site that you’d only use one night.
There are a few USFS designated campgrounds within 20-40 minutes of town as well as other areas on public lands which are accessible / legal to camp. One downside is that you’d have to drive and park in the TMV and it’d tack on an additional 40 +/- minutes each way to get to town. Takes a little extra effort, but definitely doable. Alta Lakes, Sunshine, and Matterhorn campgrounds to the south of Telluride come to mind.
As to whether or not it’s “worth it”, it really depends upon your own personal situation & expectations. I suppose if there’s at least one or a couple artists who you REALLY want to see which are appearing on Thursday or you just want to attend the festival for it’s own sake, then it’s probably going to be worth it. However, I understand your perspective; at one point last spring, Ratdog’s complete western tour was unknown with a peicemeal release of dates in CA, LV, and AZ … and at one point there was high speculation they might appear at the HSMF. However, at that point, the festival was pretty much sold out or it least it seemed the odds & circumstances were stacked against someone who only wanted to go for the one day to see Ratdog. Turns out they didn’t play HSMF, but I was prepared to make it work somehow someway … even if it took driving in and out from far away & even though it cut against the grain of how their “system” had evolved to be.
I’ve heard some people express a desire to steer or lock down the logistics of the TBF to kinda only serve those who are interested in attending for the entire 4 days - austensibly to nurture the relationship with festivarians who are primarily interested in the full “4 day+” experience. I think your situation is a prime example of the fact that not everyone CAN make all four days and even attending just one day can be a breath of fresh air into your world and perhaps might prompt you to try and carve out some more time in subsequent years. Likewise, there are people who work in the region who can only attend one or two days … so you’re not alone, and I would simply suggest to do whatever feels right for your circumstance.
Yes it is worth the effort but you will want to stay for the entire fest. Let us know after Fest if we are correct! See you next June and the June after that… :flower :flower
By the same token Af, let’s not see you wandering around here asking for “tea” when you really mean food … and all those words like Addidas and (Toyota) Celica need to be spoken so we know what you’re talking about :flower
:wave :wave :wave I will do my best . The first time I was in the states I asked for a beer in a bar. The woman behind the bar said " you want a BEAR?" No, no, I want a beer. " you can’t get a bear in here" she insisted. Sheesh